IMFOBO | CH 46 | The Leash Is Off

Surely, that wasn’t what he meant by “it’s going to explode”… right?

Eun-cho looked up at Tae-san, clearly uneasy.

She wished that damn volcano of a mouth would just stay shut for once.

“What’s with the serious face? I’m the one who should be upset here.”

Ryu Tae-san was, as always, Ryu Tae-san.

Never one to disappoint.

“I thought my balls were gonna explode.”

B-balls…!

Biologically speaking, it was just the proper term for male anatomy—but when he said it, it sounded obscenely lewd.

Tae-san, the supposed victim here, looked positively smug, the corners of his eyes curling up in amusement.

“Could’ve messed up my chances at marriage, you know. You’re totally responsible for this, Eun-cho.”

A low chuckle slipped from him again.

That man—he never missed a chance to tease when one came up.

Lately, it seemed like tormenting her had become his favorite pastime.

“Ugh, seriously! Cut it out!”

“I get it; you were curious. I just didn’t expect you to go in headfirst like that.”

His innocent tone lingered right near her ear.

He looked at her closely, his eyes calmly scanning her face before brushing a finger gently across the bridge of her nose.

“Must’ve hurt. It’s all red.”

His voice melted into her ear like warm honey.

Tae-san, who was still awkwardly standing, probably got the worst of it—but if she said that out loud, she’d only be giving him more ammunition.

“…Are we just gonna keep standing here?”

Tae-san had always been a bit of a neat freak.

His place was spotless, not a speck of dust in sight. Even when he stayed in Cheongnim-ri, he left barely a trace behind.

“…Sorry.”

She wasn’t sure what was more embarrassing—face-planting into his crotch or dragging this pristine man through a muddy puddle.

“Oh? So this is what you’re sorry for?”

Tae-san laughed as he adjusted the hem of her disheveled top.

Just the feel of his fingers brushing against the thin fabric was enough to put her nerves on edge.

As soon as he spotted an opening, Tae-san pressed his thick thumb against her lips, then pulled it away.

“Tch! Again?!”

Eun-cho scolded him like she would the cats in the yard.

This man was born to stir people up.

“Pfft. Fine, fine. I’m done.”

What kind of man makes every move feel so obscene?

It was hard to believe someone like him was currently focused on just one woman—Eun-cho.

But that kind of shallow interest never lasted long.

She wasn’t like the other women around him, which probably made her stand out for now. A passing fancy—nothing more.

Eun-cho reminded herself not to read too much into his every action. Not to let herself get swayed.

“Let’s go. Grandma’s waiting.”

The car’s lights blinked as he clicked the key fob.

He moved with that usual unhurried grace, pulling a thick blanket from the back seat and spreading it neatly over the passenger seat.

“Sit. Helping me means not wasting time, remember.”

This man… it was like he’d already figured her out.

He acted like he knew exactly where her soft spots were.

Eun-cho carefully lowered herself onto the seat.

Sure, the blanket could be washed—but if she messed up the car seat itself, that would be a pain to deal with. So she sat as carefully as she could, barely leaning back.

“Ugh… this is exhausting.”

She could never think straight around him.

What the hell was even happening?

If her nose still throbbed this much, then his… no, his lower half must be—

Stop. Stop. Just stop thinking about it.

Let it go. Let it go.

Eun-cho swallowed down a groan, her back stiff, fingers fidgeting in her lap.

He rounded the hood and slid into the driver’s seat, starting the engine in one smooth motion.

A soft vibration hummed through the car as it pulled gently out of the garage.

“You want to move the wedding up three months?”

“Is that a problem?”

Even for a loveless marriage, was there really any need to rush it to the point of raising eyebrows?

Like Ms. Han said, three months was already cutting it close.

But Ryu Tae-san, for once, didn’t sound like he was joking.

He sounded… serious.

“Ha… I guess not.”

Not that it was something to be thrilled about.

But if that’s what he wanted, then there wasn’t much point resisting.

Why’s he in such a hurry?

“If a man wants to rush a wedding, you’d better be suspicious,” her friends had once warned her.

“There’s always something off—something wrong, something he’s hiding, or something he’s lacking.”

Eun-cho had brushed off those comments back then.

She didn’t expect them to hit so hard now.

“Something off,” huh…

Her gaze flickered—unintentionally—toward the spot beneath the steering wheel.

And just as quickly, she looked away, flustered.

She was done thinking about that. For real this time. Never again.

Absolutely. Never.

“You’re acting shady. What are you thinking about?”

“What? No, I wasn’t thinking about anything.”

“You were. Trying to run again?”

Tae-san frowned slightly, clearly unimpressed by the look on Eun-cho’s face.

The car, gliding smoothly along the wet road, came to a halt at a red light.

Outside, the wipers frantically battled the heavy rain, and the tires of passing cars sloshed noisily through the puddles.

“…You’re not hiding something from me, are you?”

She finally got the words out after some hesitation, but the man offered no answer.

His expression was unreadable—neither confirming nor denying anything.

As the rain drummed harder against the car, the silence inside grew even thicker, almost oppressive.

“Did I ever tell you?” He said softly, almost playfully. “I was born to be a chaser.”

His words hung in the air like a tease, but the look in his eyes had none of the usual humor.

He leaned in closer, turning toward her—and then kissed her.

Without warning, the rest of his sentence melted against her lips, leaving not a single trace behind.

“…!”

The third kiss.

Eun-cho’s eyes, wide with surprise, slowly fluttered shut.

There was no use resisting.

The moment she parted her lips, his tongue slipped inside—seamless, sure, and impossibly close.

And she didn’t want to resist.

His kiss, bold and uninvited, burned with a heat so fierce she wanted to consume it.

Wherever they touched, that fire spread, searing her skin with want.

The slap of the wipers and the blaring horn of a car behind them clashed like a jolt to the senses.

So much for something being “off.”

This man didn’t just want her—he craved her.

Whatever else might be uncertain, that much was undeniable.

Beeeep.

Another long honk.

A curse spilled from the car speeding past, snapping Eun-cho back to her senses.

Even if they’d gotten caught up in the moment, this wasn’t the place.

Euncho shoved at Tae-san’s chest, hard.

He leaned back with a quiet chuckle, peeling away from her lips as if her resistance barely registered.

“Haah… Stop. Just stop.”

A fine strand of saliva clung between them, stretching thin before breaking.

Tae-san looked at her flushed face, eyes dark and burning.

If it were up to him, he wouldn’t let a single drop of her go to waste.

This need—it was ridiculous.

To feel so worked up from just a kiss… It was almost laughable.

But as the light turned red again, he reached into her hair and pulled her toward him once more.

Their lips crashed together again, completely, without hesitation.

Lee Eun-cho’s lips were like ripe fruit.

Sweet. Lush. Overflowing.

So once their lips met again, there was just no pulling away.

This is insane.

At first, it was all just a bit of teasing. Something to get a rise out of Lee Eun-cho.

The way she’d scramble to keep things from her sister-in-law—it was kind of adorable.

Damn it.

In the end, it wasn’t Eun-cho who got in trouble—it was Ryu Tae-san.

There wasn’t even anything explicit going on. Just the press of lips. That was it.

But even that barest contact had sent a sharp jolt straight down his spine.

And to make matters worse, she’d gone and shoved her thigh right between his legs.

Fuck. The leash is off.

“Light. The light changed.”

Eun-cho pulled back and gestured with her eyes toward the traffic light, now green.

For Tae-san—who had never once lost control of the pace—this whole situation felt unfamiliar.

Lee Eun-cho was clearly different from any woman he’d ever been with.

She wasn’t intimidated by their arrangement; on the contrary, she’d negotiated it with clear, calculated precision.

And yet—when it came to physical closeness—she was all softness and naïveté.

That gap… was gasoline to his fire.

He couldn’t not want her. Couldn’t look away. Couldn’t stop going back.

He’d never had someone get under his skin like this.

Tae-san let out a sharp breath and pressed on the accelerator.

He caught a glimpse of the flush climbing up the shell of her ear.

What kind of kiss had that effect?

Eun-cho changed right in front of him—like a blank canvas taking color, breath by breath.

Watching that transformation was… well, addictive.

The reason he was rushing the marriage was simple.

Without some kind of legitimate excuse or clear next step, there was no way a woman like Lee Eun-cho—stubbornly stuck in the Confucian era—was going to let him into her bed.

Just until then.

Once he had her, the thrill would fade. It always did.

That interest he had in women who walked the line so carefully—it would die down soon enough.

Had there ever been a woman Tae-san had pursued who hadn’t eventually fallen?

Especially someone as inexperienced and untested as her?

In the end, Lee Eun-cho would be seeing, hearing, and feeling only him.

And then this delicate seesaw between them—it’d tip. Clearly. Unequivocally.

Until then, this little game of love?

Well—he was happy to keep playing.